alzeller99's review against another edition
4.0
I really had no plans on reading this but I was in the mood for a Katee Robert book and since I am a Patreon member I had early access to this book so I thought why not! I am pretty unfamiliar with the mafia romance genre and am not super drawn to it but maybe I should change my tune because this was so much fun. I am this was pretty high-concept to begin with since the inciting incident is Rose-- our lead-- shooting her LI, Dante who immediately turns into a human heart-eyes emoji because of it. I just loved how sure Dante was that he and Rose were gonna end up together and how hot he found Rose to be when she was literally threatening to kill him. I do wish there was a little bit more relationship development before the HEA, but this was still surprisingly fun to read! Note to self: Never Doubt Katee Robert
flpanthersfan13's review against another edition
4.0
Who doesn’t love a steamy mafia romance? This one based on a relationship that led to a betrayal had a lot of big playing families and a lot of shadow negotiations to try to get through as hurdles too, but who doesn’t love a fiesty Russian and a domineering Italian coming together in the name of love?
asanusi945's review
challenging
dark
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
3.5
anabelsbrother's review
4.0
3.75-4 stars
Second-generation spinoffs can be a hit or miss sometimes, but I'm happy to report that The Bastard's Betrayal entertained me from start to finish.
Rose is such an amalgamation of her parents (still trying to figure out whether she favours Dmitri or Keira more - cannot decide)! I love her feistiness, and I definitely relate to her eldest-child behaviour/syndrome (tho luckily I'm not the heir to a mobster fam). I kind of wish we saw more of her relationship with her sisters, but it's understandable given she spent like half of the book being kidnapped by Dante.
Dante, hmm...I don't really care much about him as a hero, surprisingly? Sexy, sure, but most of the time I was just focusing on Rose. But I admire his devotion towards Rose - I, too, would catch a bullet (or two) for her. The little interactions we have of him with Dmitri are hilarious, I wish we got more of them together.
Other plus points:
- Dmitri x Keira as middle aged (!!!) parents
- Grady McNamara <333
- my queen Carrigan, ever the supportive aunt
Overall, great start to the series! I was thinking we would get Lorelei's book next but seems like Sasha's taking the stage - quite curious about this one.
E-ARC is received thanks to the author.
Second-generation spinoffs can be a hit or miss sometimes, but I'm happy to report that The Bastard's Betrayal entertained me from start to finish.
Rose is such an amalgamation of her parents (still trying to figure out whether she favours Dmitri or Keira more - cannot decide)! I love her feistiness, and I definitely relate to her eldest-child behaviour/syndrome (tho luckily I'm not the heir to a mobster fam). I kind of wish we saw more of her relationship with her sisters, but it's understandable given she spent like half of the book being kidnapped by Dante.
Dante, hmm...I don't really care much about him as a hero, surprisingly? Sexy, sure, but most of the time I was just focusing on Rose. But I admire his devotion towards Rose - I, too, would catch a bullet (or two) for her. The little interactions we have of him with Dmitri are hilarious, I wish we got more of them together.
Other plus points:
- Dmitri x Keira as middle aged (!!!) parents
- Grady McNamara <333
- my queen Carrigan, ever the supportive aunt
Overall, great start to the series! I was thinking we would get Lorelei's book next but seems like Sasha's taking the stage - quite curious about this one.
E-ARC is received thanks to the author.
zorasorel's review
mysterious
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
bookishbai's review
5.0
Where do I begin? I've been an avid reader of Katee's for the past year, and this might honestly be my favorite work of hers. In this book, there's a powerful main character who is a boss babe, and a spicy slightly over-obsessive man who is hellbent on keeping Rose in his life.
It's got everything you need. Enemies to lovers. Betrayal. Action. Secret relationship. Amazing plot. Hot sex! What more could you possibly want??
Just when I thought the smut couldn't get any hotter, she exceeded my expectations. To me, it was the perfect mix of smut and plot. I'm a sucker for mafia smut, and this delivered. 5 stars!
It's got everything you need. Enemies to lovers. Betrayal. Action. Secret relationship. Amazing plot. Hot sex! What more could you possibly want??
Just when I thought the smut couldn't get any hotter, she exceeded my expectations. To me, it was the perfect mix of smut and plot. I'm a sucker for mafia smut, and this delivered. 5 stars!
tatahababa's review
4.0
While you don't have to read the previous series to jump into this one, I recommend at least checking out The Marriage Contract first.
danieladt's review
5.0
4.5 stars.
This was a great story and you can totally read it without reading the previous generation.
I love both characters, the sexy times , all of it.
Dante is everything from the start, I love how sure he is of Rose and he is prepared to burn the world for her if necessary.
Rosa being the heir of family and being a women is tricky for her to follow her heart but I liked how she refused to succumb to her fathers opinion. She took her future in her hands and went for it.
Both of them together is everything, I felt like they really were made for each other.
I just needed more at the end but still a great read.
I always have a great time with Katees books and this one wasn’t different.
Thank you to the author for providing this arc.
This was a great story and you can totally read it without reading the previous generation.
I love both characters, the sexy times , all of it.
Dante is everything from the start, I love how sure he is of Rose and he is prepared to burn the world for her if necessary.
Rosa being the heir of family and being a women is tricky for her to follow her heart but I liked how she refused to succumb to her fathers opinion. She took her future in her hands and went for it.
Both of them together is everything, I felt like they really were made for each other.
I just needed more at the end but still a great read.
I always have a great time with Katees books and this one wasn’t different.
Thank you to the author for providing this arc.
earthtonadia's review
4.0
3.5 stars
I couldn’t wait to get my hands on this. The heroine shooting the hero *twice* in the first chapter??? Say less. But outside the bubble of Rose and Dante’s love story was a lot of mafia politics. Rival families wanting to assert dominance over the other, power plays, and then extended family from Russia wanting a piece of the pie too… at times, it felt like Rose and Dante were a side story.
I did like Dante and Rose’s characters; Dante was proactive and possessive. The lengths he went to to convince Rose to marry him were honestly so romantic. He did everything to woo her and it worked out in the end. Rose was super snarky and sassy for an heir, and she was such a badass FMC.
I couldn’t wait to get my hands on this. The heroine shooting the hero *twice* in the first chapter??? Say less. But outside the bubble of Rose and Dante’s love story was a lot of mafia politics. Rival families wanting to assert dominance over the other, power plays, and then extended family from Russia wanting a piece of the pie too… at times, it felt like Rose and Dante were a side story.
I did like Dante and Rose’s characters; Dante was proactive and possessive. The lengths he went to to convince Rose to marry him were honestly so romantic. He did everything to woo her and it worked out in the end. Rose was super snarky and sassy for an heir, and she was such a badass FMC.
jelliclecax's review against another edition
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.0